The present disclosure is related to oilfield equipment and, more particularly, to a portable plant for mixing, storing, and delivering drilling fluid.
In the oil and gas industry, well operators face numerous challenges related to drilling fluid accessibility while drilling wellbores used to extract hydrocarbons from subterranean formations. Solutions for logistical factors relating to drilling fluid accessibility, such as operating a drilling rig in a remote location or a drilling rig with limited power and/or fuel resources, often go unfounded. Other limitations, such as storage capabilities, location, and power sourcing can also present specifically challenging tasks during wellbore drilling operations. Drilling fluid storage capacity, for example, plays a large role in daily operations and is directly limited by a well operator's allowable onsite footprint, or lack thereof. Moreover, increasing environmental regulations and added storage and/or disposal costs result in well operators seeking effective solutions that can meet health and safety regulations and thereby reduce the number of incidents.
Drilling fluid plants or facilities typically include permanent installation built at planned and permitted wellbore drilling sites. Although, some existing drilling fluid installations are purportedly “portable”, even those require major capital investment for preparation of the site (e.g., installation of concrete footings and/or slabs) and a long lead-time for deployment/construction and commissioning. Under the laws of some countries and territories a “portable” drilling fluid installation is treated as “permanent” if concrete footings and/or slabs are installed.